Hidden Fees Are Now Illegal: How to Spot and Report Drip Pricing

Hidden fees added during checkout (known as "drip pricing") are now illegal in the UK. Since 6 April 2025, businesses must show you the total, all-inclusive price upfront. No more booking fees, processing fees, or service charges magically appearing at the payment stage. Yet millions of consumers still encounter drip pricing daily, and most don't realise they can now challenge it. Here's how.

What Is Drip Pricing?

Drip pricing is when a business advertises a product or service at one price, then adds mandatory fees as you move through the purchase process. The price "drips" upwards.

Classic examples:

• A concert ticket advertised at £50, with a £12 "booking fee" and £3 "facility fee" added at checkout
• A hotel room listed at £120/night, with a £25 "resort fee" and £10 "cleaning fee" added later
• A food delivery showing a £15 meal, then adding a £3 "service charge," £2 "small order fee," and £1 "bag charge"
• A flight advertised at £29, with a £20 "card payment fee" and £15 "seat selection fee" revealed at payment (where seat selection is actually required)

Research by the government found that unavoidable hidden fees cost UK consumers £2.2 billion per year. The practice is most common in transport (72% of businesses), entertainment (54%), and hospitality (56%).

What the Law Now Says

Under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, since 6 April 2025:

The Rule

Every "invitation to treat" (which means any pricing display, whether online, in-store, in advertising, or on packaging) must show the total price including all mandatory fees, taxes, and charges.

What's Banned

• Adding unavoidable booking fees at checkout that weren't in the headline price
• Revealing mandatory service charges only during the payment process
• Displaying prices that exclude compulsory add-ons (like fees for using a card, or mandatory insurance)
• Any price presentation where the final amount is higher than what was initially shown due to unavoidable charges

What's Still Allowed

• Genuinely optional extras can still be shown separately. Want to upgrade your seat? Add priority boarding? Those can be offered as add-ons at checkout
• Delivery charges that vary based on your address or chosen delivery speed can be shown separately, as they're not universal
• Government taxes like VAT must be included, but separately itemised taxes (like the Air Passenger Duty shown on flight bookings) can be displayed alongside the total

The CMA Is Actively Enforcing This

The CMA isn't waiting around. In November 2025, it launched enforcement action against 8 businesses and sent advisory letters to over 100 firms for suspected breaches including drip pricing and misleading time-limited offers.

Companies found in breach can face fines of up to 10% of global turnover and be ordered to pay compensation to affected customers.

How to Spot Drip Pricing

Even with the ban, some businesses are still doing it, either because they haven't updated their practices or because they're hoping nobody notices. Watch out for:

• Prices that change between the product page and checkout
• "Fees" that appear in the basket or payment summary that weren't in the listing
• Charges labelled as "processing," "administration," "handling," or "booking" fees
• Small print that says "plus fees" or "charges may apply"

How to Challenge It

Step 1: Screenshot Everything

Before you pay, take screenshots of the advertised price and the final checkout price. This is your evidence.

Step 2: Don't Pay (If Possible)

If you spot drip pricing before completing your purchase, you're under no obligation to proceed. Close the tab and look elsewhere.

Step 3: If You've Already Paid

If you only noticed the extra fees after paying:

1. Contact the seller and request a refund of the hidden fees. State that the pricing was misleading under the DMCC Act
2. Use chargeback or Section 75 if they refuse, particularly if the total charge was misrepresented
3. Report to the CMA via their online consumer complaint form at gov.uk. Include your screenshots

Step 4: Report It

Even if you don't want a personal refund, reporting drip pricing to the CMA helps them build enforcement cases. The more reports they receive about a specific company, the more likely that company is to face investigation.

Sectors to Watch

Based on CMA enforcement data and consumer complaints, these sectors are the worst offenders:

• Event ticketing - Ticketmaster, AXS, and others have historically added "service fees" at checkout
• Hotels and holiday rentals - Resort fees, cleaning fees, and admin charges
• Food delivery platforms - Service charges, small order fees, and "busy area" surcharges
• Airlines - Card payment fees, compulsory seat selection, and luggage charges that aren't in the headline price
• Car hire - Insurance "excess reduction" fees, fuel charges, and young driver surcharges revealed at collection

The Bigger Picture

Drip pricing exists because it works. Behavioural research shows that once you've invested time choosing a product (selecting a concert date, finding a hotel, picking your meal), you're far less likely to abandon the purchase when fees appear at checkout. Companies exploit this "sunk cost" psychology to extract more money.

The ban doesn't eliminate companies from charging fees. It just forces them to be honest about the total price from the start. That transparency lets you compare properly and make informed decisions.

If the price goes up between the listing and the checkout, that's not a fee: it's a trick. And now, it's an illegal one.